2001–02 Los Angeles Lakers season

2001–02 Los Angeles Lakers season
NBA champions
Conference champions
Head coach Phil Jackson
General manager Mitch Kupchak
Owner(s) Jerry Buss
Arena Staples Center
Results
Record 58–24 (.707)
Place Division: 2nd (Pacific)
Conference: 3rd (Western)
Playoff finish NBA Champions
(Defeated Nets 4–0)
Stats @ Basketball-Reference.com
Local media
Television KCAL-TV
Fox Sports Net West
Radio KLAC

The 2001–02 NBA season was the Lakers' 54th season in the National Basketball Association, and 42nd in the city of Los Angeles.[1] The Lakers entered the season as the two-time defending NBA champions, having defeated the Philadelphia 76ers in five games in the 2001 NBA Finals, winning their thirteenth NBA championship. During the offseason, the Lakers signed All-Star guard Mitch Richmond and free agent Samaki Walker,[2] while acquiring Lindsey Hunter from the Milwaukee Bucks. The team got off to a fast start winning 16 of their first 17 games, and finished second in the Pacific Division with a 58–24 record. Kobe Bryant and Shaquille O'Neal were both selected for the 2002 NBA All-Star Game in which Bryant won MVP honors despite being booed by the hometown crowd, but O'Neal did not participate in the All-Star game due to an injury.

After sweeping the Portland Trail Blazers 3–0 in the first round of the playoffs, then defeating the San Antonio Spurs 4–1 in the semifinals, the Lakers where pushed to the brink once more in the Western Conference Finals by their archrivals the Sacramento Kings, who they narrowly defeated in a deciding seventh game. They then went on to win the NBA Finals, defeating and sweeping the New Jersey Nets in four straight games for their second three-peat in franchise history, the first since 1952–54.[3] Following the season, Richmond retired and Hunter was traded to the Toronto Raptors.

This would be the third and final consecutive NBA Championship the Lakers won in the early 2000s, as in the next season, their quest for a fourth consecutive NBA Championship ended with a playoff elimination by the San Antonio Spurs in six games in the Semifinals, who would then go on to win the NBA Finals that season and their second NBA Championship, defeating the New Jersey Nets in six games. Although the Lakers would return to the Finals the following year in 2004, they would go on to lose to the Detroit Pistons in five games, despite being the heavy favorites to win and having former All-Stars and veterans Gary Payton and Karl Malone, leading to O'Neal's departure from the Lakers amidst boiling points between the Lakers staff and management and Kobe Bryant, culminating in his trade to the Miami Heat, marking the end of the early 2000s Lakers dynasty. The Lakers would not win another title until 2009, in which they defeated the Orlando Magic in five games.

Draft picks

  • The Los Angeles Lakers did not have any Draft Picks.
  • The Lakers owned the 27th Pick Overall and it was sent to New York.
  • They also owned the 56th Pick Overall and it was sent to San Antonio.

Roster

Los Angeles Lakers roster
PlayersCoaches
Pos.No.NameHeightWeightDOB (YYYY-MM-DD)From
G/F 8 United States Bryant, Kobe 6 ft 6 in (1.98 m) 205 lb (93 kg) Lower Merion HS (PA)
G 2 United States Fisher, Derek 6 ft 1 in (1.85 m) 210 lb (95 kg) Arkansas-Little Rock
F 17 Canada Fox, Rick 6 ft 7 in (2.01 m) 230 lb (104 kg) North Carolina
F 3 United States George, Devean 6 ft 8 in (2.03 m) 235 lb (107 kg) Augsburg
F 5 United States Horry, Robert 6 ft 10 in (2.08 m) 240 lb (109 kg) Alabama
G 10 United States Hunter, Lindsey 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) 195 lb (88 kg) Jackson State
F 35 United States Madsen, Mark 6 ft 9 in (2.06 m) 240 lb (109 kg) Stanford
C 6 United States McCoy, Jelani  6 ft 10 in (2.08 m) 245 lb (111 kg) UCLA
C 14 Ukraine Medvedenko, Slava 6 ft 10 in (2.08 m) 253 lb (115 kg) Ukraine
C 34 United States O'Neal, Shaquille 7 ft 1 in (2.16 m) 325 lb (147 kg) LSU
G 23 United States Richmond, Mitch 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) 215 lb (98 kg) Kansas State
G 20 United States Shaw, Brian 6 ft 6 in (1.98 m) 190 lb (86 kg) UC Santa Barbara
F/C 52 United States Walker, Samaki 6 ft 9 in (2.06 m) 250 lb (113 kg) Louisville
Head coach
Assistant coach(es)
Legend
  • (C) Team captain
  • (DP) Unsigned draft pick
  • (FA) Free agent
  • (S) Suspended
  • Injured

Roster
Last transaction: 2001-11-24

Regular season

Season standings

Pacific Division W L PCT GB Home Road Div
y-Sacramento Kings 6121.744–36–525–1615–9
x-Los Angeles Lakers 5824.707334–724–1716–8
x-Portland Trail Blazers 4933.5981230–1119–2214–10
x-Seattle SuperSonics 4537.5491626–1519–2213–11
Los Angeles Clippers 3943.4762225–1614–279–15
Phoenix Suns 3646.4392523–1813–2812–12
Golden State Warriors 2161.2564014–277–345–19
# Western Conference
Team W L PCT GB
1 z-Sacramento Kings6121.744–
2 y-San Antonio Spurs5824.7073
3 x-Los Angeles Lakers5824.7073
4 x-Dallas Mavericks5725.6954
5 x-Minnesota Timberwolves5032.61011
6 x-Portland Trail Blazers4933.59812
7 x-Seattle SuperSonics4537.54916
8 x-Utah Jazz4438.53717
9 Los Angeles Clippers3943.47622
10 Phoenix Suns3646.43925
11 Houston Rockets2854.34133
12 Denver Nuggets2755.32934
13 Memphis Grizzlies2359.28038
14 Golden State Warriors2161.25640


Record vs. opponents

2001–02 NBA records
Team ATL BOS CHA CHI CLE DAL DEN DET GSW HOU IND LAC LAL MEM MIA MIL MIN NJN NYK ORL PHI PHO POR SAC SAS SEA TOR UTA WAS
Atlanta —2–22–23–13–10–22–01–32–01–11–31–11–12–03–11–30–22–11–31–31–31–11–10–20–20–20–41–10–3
Boston 2–2—2–12–24–00–22–02–21–10–23–02–02–02–03–11–31–13–14–03–11–31–11–10–20–21–12–21–13–1
Charlotte 2–21–2—4–03–10–22–01–32–01–13–11–10–21–13–02–20–21–32–23–11–32–01–10–21–11–12–21–13–1
Chicago 1–32–20–4—1–30–20–21–31–12–00–40–22–01–11–32–20–20–43–10–31–21–10–20–20–21–10–40–21–3
Cleveland 1–30–41–33–1—0–21–11–31–12–02–20–20–21–13–13–12–01–32–21–30–31–10–20–21–10–21–30–21–2
Dallas 2–02–02–02–02–0—4–01–14–02–22–02–21–34–01–12–02–22–01–11–11–13–12–23–11–33–11–13–11–1
Denver 0–20–20–22–01–10–4—0–21–32–20–21–31–33–10–20–22–21–12–00–21–13–12–20–40–43–11–11–30–2
Detroit 3–12–23–13–13–11–12–0—1–11–13–11–10–22–02–12–21–13–13–12–22–11–10–20–20–21–13–11–14–0
Golden State 0–21–10–21–11–10–43–11–1—1–30–22–21–33–10–20–21–31–11–10–21–10–42–20–40–40–40–20–41–1
Houston 1–12–01–10–20–22–22–21–13–1—0–21–30–41–30–21–12–20–21–10–21–12–21–30–40–42–21–12–21–1
Indiana 3–10–31–34–02–20–22–01–32–02–0—1–10–21–12–21–31–11–32–13–13–11–11–12–01–10–21–31–13–1
L.A. Clippers 1–10–21–12–02–02–23–11–12–23–11–1—1–33–12–01–12–20–22–01–10–23–11–31–31–31–31–10–41–1
L.A. Lakers 1–10–22–00–22–03–13–12–03–14–02–03–1—3–11–12–02–21–12–02–01–12–22–23–13–13–11–13–12–0
Memphis 0–20–21–11–11–10–41–30–21–33–11–11–31–3—1–10–20–40–21–10–22–01–32–21–30–40–41–13–10–2
Miami 1–31–30–33–11–31–12–01–22–02–02–20–21–11–1—3–10–21–32–23–11–31–11–10–21–12–01–30–22–2
Milwaukee 3–13–12–22–21–30–22–02–22–01–13–11–10–22–01–3—0–21–21–32–11–30–20–20–22–00–24–02–03–1
Minnesota 2–01–12–02–00–22–22–21–13–12–21–12–22–24–02–02–0—1–12–01–11–12–22–21–32–22–21–13–12–0
New Jersey 1–21–33–14–03–10–21–11–31–12–03–12–01–12–03–12–11–1—4–03–12–21–11–11–12–01–12–21–13–1
New York 3–10–42–21–32–21–10–21–31–11–11–20–20–21–12–23–10–20–4—0–41–31–11–11–10–22–03–01–11–3
Orlando 3–11–31–33–03–11–12–02–22–02–01–31–10–22–01–31–21–11–34–0—3–12–00–21–10–20–23–11–12–2
Philadelphia 3–13–13–12–13–01–11–11–21–11–11–32–01–10–23–13–11–12–23–11–3—2–00–20–21–11–11–30–22–3
Phoenix 1–11–10–21–11–11–31–31–14–02–21–11–32–23–11–12–02–21–11–10–20–2—2–21–31–32–21–12–20–2
Portland 1–11–11–12–02–02–22–22–02–23–11–13–12–22–21–12–02–21–11–12–02–02–2—2–21–33–11–11–32–0
Sacramento 2–02–02–02–02–01–34–02–04–04–00–23–11–33–12–02–03–11–11–11–12–03–12–2—3–12–22–04–01–1
San Antonio 2–02–01–12–01–13–14–02–04–04–01–13–11–34–01–10–22–20–22–02–01–13–13–11–3—2–21–14–02–0
Seattle 2–01–11–11–12–01–31–31–14–02–22–03–11–34–00–22–02–21–10–22–01–12–21–32–22–2—2–01–31–1
Toronto 4–02–22–24–03–11–11–11–32–01–13–11–11–11–13–10–41–12–20–31–33–11–11–10–21–10–2—1–11–2
Utah 1–11–11–12–02–01–33–11–14–02–21–14–01–31–32–00–21–31–11–11–12–02–23–10–40–43–11–1—2–0
Washington 3–01–31–33–12–11–12–00–41–11–11–31–10–22–02–21–30–21–33–12–23–22–00–21–10–21–12–10–2—

Game log

Regular season

2001–02 game log
Total: 58–24 (Home: 34–7; Road: 24–17)
October: 1–0 (Home: 1–0; Road: 0–0)
November : 13–1 (Home: 8–0; Road: 5–1)
December : 7–5 (Home: 6–2; Road: 1–3)
January : 10–6 (Home: 3–2; Road: 7–4)
February : 8–5 (Home: 1–3; Road: 7–2)
March : 13–4 (Home: 11–0; Road: 2–4)
April : 6–3 (Home: 4–0; Road: 2–3)
2001–02 season schedule

Playoffs

2001–02 game log
Total: 15–4 (Home: 8–2; Road: 7–2)
First Round: 3–0 (Home: 2–0; Road: 1–0)
Conference Semifinals : 4–1 (Home: 2–1; Road: 2–0)
Conference Finals : 4–3 (Home: 2–1; Road: 2–2)
NBA Finals : 4–0 (Home: 2–0; Road: 2–0)
2001–02 season schedule

Playoffs

West First Round

(3) Los Angeles Lakers vs. (6) Portland Trail Blazers Last Playoff Meeting: 2001 Western Conference First Round (Los Angeles won 3-0)

Game Date Visitor Score Home Score Record

(LAL-POR)

 Venue TV Time Recap
1 April 21 Portland 87 Los Angeles 95 1-0 Staples Center NBC 5:30et/2:30pt Recap
2 April 25 Portland 96 Los Angeles 103 2-0 Staples Center TNT 10:30et/7:30pt Recap
3 April 28 Los Angeles 92 Portland 91 3-0 Rose Garden NBC 5:30et/2:30pt Recap
Los Angeles wins series 3–0

West Conference Semifinals

(2) San Antonio Spurs vs. (3) Los Angeles Lakers Last Playoff Meeting: 2001 Western Conference Finals (Los Angeles won 4-0)

Game Date Visitor Score Home Score Record

(LAL-SAS)

 Venue TV Time Recap
1 May 5 San Antonio 80 Los Angeles 86 1-0 Staples Center NBC 5:30et/2:30pt Recap
2 May 7 San Antonio 88 Los Angeles 85 1-1 Staples Center TBS 10:30et/7:30pt Recap
3 May 10 Los Angeles 99 San Antonio 89 2-1 Alamodome TNT 9:30et/8:30ct Recap
4 May 12 Los Angeles 87 San Antonio 85 3-1 Alamodome NBC 5:30et/4:30ct Recap
5 May 14 San Antonio 87 Los Angeles 93 4-1 Staples Center TBS 10:30et/7:30pt Recap
Los Angeles wins series 4–1

West Conference Finals

(1) Sacramento Kings vs. (3) Los Angeles Lakers

Last Playoff Meeting: 2001 Western Conference Semifinals (Los Angeles won 4-0)

Game Date Visitor Score Home Score Record

(SAC-LAL)

 Venue TV Time (EST) Recap
1 May 18 Los Angeles 106 Sacramento 99 0-1 ARCO Arena NBC 6:30 Recap
2 May 20 Los Angeles 90 Sacramento 96 1-1 ARCO Arena TNT 9:00 Recap
3 May 24 Sacramento 103 Los Angeles 90 2-1 Staples Center NBC 9:00 Recap
4 May 26 Sacramento 99 Los Angeles 100 2-2 Staples Center NBC 5:30 Recap
5 May 28 Los Angeles 91 Sacramento 92 3-2 ARCO Arena NBC 9:00 Recap
6 May 31 Sacramento 102 Los Angeles 106 3-3 Staples Center NBC 9:30 Recap
7* June 2 Los Angeles 112 Sacramento 106 3-4 ARCO Arena NBC 7:30 Recap
Los Angeles wins Western Conference Championship 4–3

NBA Finals

Summary

The following scoring summary is written in a line score format, except that the quarter numbers are replaced by game numbers.

Team Game 1 Game 2 Game 3 Game 4 Wins
Los Angeles (West) 991061061134
New Jersey (East) 94831031070

Aspects

Amid tensions between co-captains Shaquille O'Neal and Kobe Bryant, the franchise had another stellar season, finishing 58–24 (.707), good for second in the Pacific Division and earning the third seed in the Western Conference. Bryant and O'Neal were voted starters in the 2002 NBA All-Star Game, where Bryant won the game MVP trophy in his hometown Philadelphia.[4] The duo appeared on the All-NBA First Team and Bryant was honored with a NBA All-Defensive Second Team selection.[5][6]

Entering the 2001–02 season, the New Jersey Nets were enduring a three-year playoff drought and had a 73–141 record over that span. In 1999, the Nets hired Rod Thorn as team president and immediately, he hired the recently retired Byron Scott to coach New Jersey. Thorn then dealt for Stephon Marbury in a three-team trade with the Milwaukee Bucks and Minnesota Timberwolves, trading Sam Cassell away to the Bucks.[7] Due to the Nets' 31–51 season in 1999–00 season, they had the first overall pick in the 2000 NBA draft, which they used to select power forward Kenyon Martin out of the University of Cincinnati.[8] Despite the reshuffling of the roster and a Rookie of the Year season for Martin, New Jersey struggled, ending the season with a 26–56 (.317) record, and were bestowed the 7th pick in the upcoming draft.

With another lottery pick, Thorn dealt it to the Houston Rockets for draftees Richard Jefferson, Jason Collins and Brandon Armstrong.[7] The next day, Phoenix Suns owner Jerry Colangelo announced a franchise-shaking trade; Phoenix would swap their point guard Jason Kidd for his New Jersey counterpart Stephon Marbury.[9]

With the Princeton offense installed from the coaching staff,[10] the Nets rebounded to a 52–30 (.634) mark, a twenty-six-win improvement from the last season, and clinched the number-one seed in the Eastern Conference. Kidd finished the season awarded with first team spots on both the All-NBA[5] and All-Defensive Teams[6] and was selected for his fifth All-Star game. He also finished runner-up to San Antonio Spurs power forward Tim Duncan in the Most Valuable Player voting.[11] Richard Jefferson was an All-Rookie second team selection and Thorn, the architect of the franchise's resurgence, was awarded NBA Executive of the Year.[12]

Game One

Wednesday, June 5, 2002, 6:00 at the Staples Center.

Los Angeles's Staples Center sold out for the inaugural game of the 2002 NBA Finals, with nearly 19,000 on hand. The Nets trotted out a lineup of Kidd, Kittles, Martin, Van Horn and MacCulloth to hold up against the two-time defending and heavily favored champions. The Lakers brought out Derek Fisher, Rick Fox, Shaquille O'Neal, Robert Horry, and Kobe Bryant, who drew the assignment of guarding Kidd. New Jersey head coach Byron Scott, a member of the Showtime Lakers, received a standing ovation.

Taking advantage of a late arrival to the arena by New Jersey, L.A. dominated the first 17 minutes of play with a 42-19 score by the 6:41 mark in the second quarter. From that point on, the Nets went on a 17–6 to close the lead to a respectable 12. They had no answer for O'Neal, however, who had bullied MacCulloth into 16 points and 6 rebounds by half-time. The Nets outscored the Lakers in the third but stood steadfast as Bryant scored 11 of his 22 in the third.

" You can't dig yourself a hole, get down by 19 or 20 points and expect to win. We just dug ourselves a hole against the champions. "

—Lucious Harris, Sports Illustrated[13]

New Jersey battled back, coming as close as three several times in the final quarter. Desperate to take the lead, they utilized the "Hack-a-Shaq" strategy midway in the fourth. It backfired, as O'Neal was 5–8 from the free throw line and had 16 points and 9 rebounds in the period alone.

New Jersey was doomed by their late start and poor shooting. The Nets, who shot 45% from the field and 74% on free throws were 39% and 57% respectively.[14] Kidd finished with a triple–double, the 26th in Finals history and the first since Charles Barkley's in the 1993 series.

Recap

Team 1st Qt. 2nd Qt. 3rd Qt. 4th Qt. Total
New Jersey 142227 3194
Los Angeles 291924 2799

Game Two

Friday, June 7, 2002, 6:00 at the Staples Center.

The second game was more of statement as the Lakers clobbered the Nets by a score of 106-83 thanks to Shaquille O'Neal's 40 points, 12 rebounds, and 8 assists.

Recap

Team 1st Qt. 2nd Qt. 3rd Qt. 4th Qt. Total
New Jersey 212218 2283
Los Angeles 272228 29106

Game Three

Sunday, June 9, 2002, 8:30 at the Continental Airlines Arena.

Game Three would prove to a hard fought game (much like the first game of the series) as the Lakers and Nets would trade leads throughout the game but thanks to Kobe Bryant's 36 points, 6 rebounds, 4 assists and 2 blocks the Lakers prevail by a score of 106-103 to take a commanding 3-0 series lead.

Recap

Team 1st Qt. 2nd Qt. 3rd Qt. 4th Qt. Total
Los Angeles 312126 28106
New Jersey 232332 25103

Game Four

Wednesday, June 12, 2002, 9:00 at the Continental Airlines Arena.

Despite this being a hard fought battle (much like the previous game and as well as the first game of the series) the Lakers still won game four and the championship, giving Phil Jackson his Red Auerbach-tying ninth title and the Lakers their third consecutive title (and fourteenth overall) making them the fifth team to win three consecutive titles and denying the Nets their first ever championship since the franchise moved to East Rutherford.

Recap

Team 1st Qt. 2nd Qt. 3rd Qt. 4th Qt. Total
Los Angeles 273126 29113
New Jersey 342323 27107

Player statistics

Legend
  GP Games played   GS  Games started  MPG  Minutes per game
 FG%  Field-goal percentage  3P%  3-point field-goal percentage  FT%  Free-throw percentage
 RPG  Rebounds per game  APG  Assists per game  SPG  Steals per game
 BPG  Blocks per game  PPG  Points per game

Season

Player GP GS MPG FG% 3P% FT% RPG APG SPG BPG PPG
Kobe Bryant 808038.3.469.250.8295.55.51.48.4425.2
Derek Fisher 703528.2.411.413.8472.12.6.94.1311.2
Rick Fox 828227.9.421.313.8244.73.5.82.267.9
Devean George 82121.5.411.371.6753.71.4.87.517.1
Robert Horry 812326.4.398.374.7835.92.9.951.106.8
Lindsey Hunter 824719.7.382.380.5001.51.6.80.235.8
Mark Madsen 59511.0.452.000.6482.7.7.27.222.8
Jelani McCoy 2105.0.571.000.2501.2.3.00.241.2
Slava Medvedenko 71610.3.477.000.6612.2.6.41.154.7
Shaquille O'Neal 676636.1.579.000.55510.73.0.612.0427.2
Mike Penberthy 304.0.500.000.750.7.7.67.001.7
Mitch Richmond 64211.1.405.290.9551.5.9.28.094.1
Brian Shaw 58010.9.353.330.6921.91.5.43.052.9
Samaki Walker 696324.0.512.000.6677.0.9.411.286.7

Playoffs

Player GP GS MPG FG% 3P% FT% RPG APG SPG BPG PPG
Kobe Bryant 191943.8.434.379.7595.84.61.42.8926.6
Derek Fisher 191934.2.357.358.7863.32.71.00.0510.2
Rick Fox 191934.3.482.349.7555.43.41.11.329.8
Devean George 19017.2.365.229.7333.6.6.58.535.0
Robert Horry 191437.0.449.387.7898.13.21.74.849.3
Lindsey Hunter 1807.3.311.276.000.4.6.11.002.0
Mark Madsen 701.4.000.000.000.3.0.00.00.0
Slava Medvedenko 703.0.600.000.000.6.0.00.00.9
Shaquille O'Neal 191940.8.529.000.64912.62.8.532.5328.5
Mitch Richmond 202.01.000.000.500.5.0.00.001.5
Brian Shaw 19012.5.333.2811.0001.81.6.26.322.9
Samaki Walker 19512.6.4621.000.7654.1.2.11.323.3

Award winners

References

  1. ↑ "2001-02 Los Angeles Lakers Roster and Stats - Basketball-Reference.com". Basketball-Reference.com. Archived from the original on 24 April 2018. Retrieved 27 April 2018.
  2. ↑ "Walker, Richmond Top Laker List". Los Angeles Times. July 7, 2001. Archived from the original on October 18, 2015. Retrieved August 22, 2017.
  3. ↑ "O'Neal is a three-peat MVP as Lakers finally cut down the Nets". Los Angeles Times. June 13, 2002. Archived from the original on September 15, 2015. Retrieved August 22, 2017.
  4. ↑ West Wins! Kobe Stakes Claim in All-Star Lore Archived 2008-12-26 at the Wayback Machine. NBA.com
  5. 1 2 Bryant, McGrady are first-time All-NBA selections Archived 2011-02-12 at the Wayback Machine., USA Today
  6. 1 2 Payton ties mark with ninth All-Defensive slot Archived 2011-02-12 at the Wayback Machine. USA Today
  7. 1 2 Nets Trade History Archived 2007-04-20 at the Wayback Machine. NBA.com/nets
  8. ↑ Holding to form: Nets take Martin with first pick Archived 2010-02-06 at the Wayback Machine. SportsIllustrated.com
  9. ↑ Kidd, Marbury primary players in trade Archived 2009-02-09 at the Wayback Machine., USA Today
  10. ↑ Liz Robbins (2002-02-02). "PRO BASKETBALL; Nets Get a New Read From the Old School". The New York Times. Archived from the original on 2008-09-08. Retrieved 2009-05-16.
  11. ↑ It's official: Duncan captures MVP award Archived 2012-02-02 at WebCite USA Today. Retrieved December 28, 2008
  12. ↑ Title goes to one sharp Thorn: Nets GM honored as wheeler-deeler, New York Daily-News. Accessed 2009-04-14. Archived 2009-05-14.
  13. ↑ "Nets' slow start costs them dearly in Game 1". cnn.com. Archived from the original on 24 October 2012. Retrieved 27 April 2018.
  14. ↑ "Nets' slow start costs them dearly in Game 1". Sports Illustrated. Associated Press. 2002-06-06. Archived from the original on 2008-09-08. Retrieved 2009-05-16.
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